The
wreckage of an Air Nostrum Foker 50 is seen
after the aircraft crash-landed on January 17,
2003.

MADRID, Spain (Reuters) -- A passenger plane carrying 17
people overshot the runway at the Melilla airport in the
Spanish enclave of the North African coast while landing on
Friday, crashing into a fence and alarming passengers.

Nine people, including a pregnant woman, were reported to
be slightly injured and taken to the city's hospital, said
Antonio Ramirez, spokesman of the Interior Ministry in Melilla.
Most of the injured were treated for contusions and nervous
breakdowns, Ramirez said.

The nationalities of the injured were not immediatly
released.

The plane, a Fokker 50 owned by Air Nostrum, was attempting
to land after flying from Malaga when it overran the runway
and ended up crashing into the airport's perimeter fence next
to a highway that surrounds the airport.

As of result of the emergency landing, the plane broke in
two, Ramirez said.

The accident forced the closure of the highway but the
airport remained operative, said Miguel Marin, director of the
Melilla airport.

The airline said the cause of the accident had not been
determined. Air Nostrum is a former subsidiary of the national
airline, Iberia.

The aircraft,
operating as Iberia Regional 8276 from Malaga, overran
runway 33 (4,420 ft) while landing at Melilla in heavy
winds. 9 passengers sustained injuries -- two seriously --
as the aircraft crashed into the airport boundary fence
and broke into two pieces.